Today’s challenge: write a piece of flash fiction that begins with a visitor at the door. A guest. Or a villain. Or something altogether stranger. Any genre will do. But someone is at the door.
Who? Why? For what purpose?
Length: 1000 words-ish
Due by: Friday, June 17th, noon EST.
Post at your online space, drop a comment here.
Knock, knock. Who’s there?
Tsara Shelton says:
Okay. I’m absolutely unashamedly unabashedly cheating.
I wrote this just before Halloween last year. And it’s non-fiction. But it’s about the ghost who knocked on my door when I was twelve. So I truly hope you don’t mind if I share it here, Chuck.
Here it is:
I’m Not Afraid Of Kevin Reese (The Ghost At My Door)
http://autismanswersbytsara.blogspot.com/2015/10/autism-answer-im-not-afraid-of-kevin.html
June 10, 2016 — 10:18 AM
Amira&MelaJohnson104 says:
Tsara, I loved your story. 🙂 I’m with you on the cheating part 😉
June 10, 2016 — 3:40 PM
Fatma Alici says:
Wonderful story, I like the kind of moment by moment play by play. It works really well.
June 11, 2016 — 3:28 PM
Tsara Shelton says:
Thank you, Fatma! It was fun to write and remember.
Hugs!
June 13, 2016 — 8:24 PM
Fantastical says:
This was not only beautifully written, but just a wonderful story as well.
June 14, 2016 — 11:39 AM
Tsara Shelton says:
Oh, thank you! I’m honored that you enjoyed it!!
June 20, 2016 — 3:20 PM
legreene515 says:
I really enjoyed this story. I had a dream about a close friend of mine after he took his life when I was 15. i do think spirits come back to tell us they are okay. Wonderful use of the prompt.
June 16, 2016 — 9:11 AM
Tsara Shelton says:
Thank you! I have always been a hard to describe mix of someone who believes in such things and someone who is strangely uninterested. However, I do have an annual conversation with my dad who passed away several years ago. The rule is this: I can tell him anything but I’m not allowed to ask him about himself. I’ve never questioned it, I just enjoy it!
Hugs!
June 20, 2016 — 3:27 PM
Mark Gardner says:
This prompt was perfect for continuing Mental State: http://wp.me/s4le2s-sunshine
June 10, 2016 — 10:45 AM
christopherslagle says:
Possibly my favorite installment of Mental State so far. Steven is more intriguing every week!
June 14, 2016 — 10:53 AM
Mark Gardner says:
Thanks, Christopher! I hope you keep reading.
June 14, 2016 — 4:17 PM
legreene515 says:
I’m glad you introduced Ruby! Great installment. I can’t wait to keep reading.
June 16, 2016 — 9:19 AM
Mark Gardner says:
Lauren, the next chapter is up.
June 17, 2016 — 7:52 PM
Pleasant Street says:
I enjoyed this- looks like I need to be reading back some to catch up
June 17, 2016 — 10:14 AM
Mark Gardner says:
Thanks! This week’s chapter is already up. I hope you do catch up.
June 17, 2016 — 7:51 PM
The Writer says:
“Becoming Utopia”
https://atcrump.com/2016/06/10/becoming-utopia-chapter-3-3-bloodline/
-Thanks Chuck.
June 10, 2016 — 11:21 AM
Fatma Alici says:
This snippet makes me curious about the rest of work. Cool, thanks for sharing.
June 11, 2016 — 3:34 PM
David Williams says:
I am trying to get Poe and his raven out of my head. . .
June 10, 2016 — 11:43 AM
Mozette says:
You and I think alike! 😀
June 10, 2016 — 9:12 PM
Amira&MelaJohnson104 says:
I’m in the same boat as Tsara Shelton and I deeply apologize. But, I want to share with you a story I wrote that fits this challenge quite nicely. It’s a little over the top and I want to know what you guys think.
The Unedited Interview with Pornstar, Brenford Stevens. And, no, lol, I don’t go there. See for yourself 🙂
http://www.authoryellehughes.com/?p=6510
June 10, 2016 — 2:25 PM
Mozette says:
Ooooooh, Boy!!!!!! 😛
June 12, 2016 — 8:54 AM
Yelle Hughes (@YelleHughes) says:
She’s so fired, right? 🙂
June 15, 2016 — 12:19 AM
Tsara Shelton says:
That was fun!! It reminds me of this dream I had…. tee hee!
June 13, 2016 — 8:23 PM
Yelle Hughes (@YelleHughes) says:
🙂
June 13, 2016 — 10:23 PM
jack lee taylor says:
Whew! I need to cool down now. Great job!
June 14, 2016 — 12:28 PM
legreene515 says:
I LOVED this!
June 16, 2016 — 9:44 AM
Kim says:
Mine is Blog Heaven. I totally wrote off the fly, very fast, so there ya go. Five hundred words for a knock on the door. Thanks for prompting. I tied in my draft I’m querying. Yup. Here’s the link: https://theivorytide.com/2016/06/10/blog-heaven/
June 10, 2016 — 2:45 PM
jack lee taylor says:
Haven’t done these in a while, but glad to throw something in. Went over some, but had fun!
https://jackleetaylor.com/2016/06/10/morton/
June 10, 2016 — 3:35 PM
christopherslagle says:
Wow. Just wow. Nice job.
June 14, 2016 — 11:03 AM
Fantastical says:
Well done. I liked the twists and turns of it, and in such a short space. Bravo!
June 14, 2016 — 12:02 PM
Skye says:
Well done! Great twist near the end.
June 14, 2016 — 2:54 PM
jack lee taylor says:
Thanks!
June 14, 2016 — 3:17 PM
Yelle Hughes (@YelleHughes) says:
Had me glued to my chair, hoping someone would save the poor guy. Guess not. This was awesome, thanks so much for sharing this. 🙂
June 15, 2016 — 12:18 AM
legreene515 says:
I loved the twist in this. great job.
June 16, 2016 — 9:58 AM
mannixk says:
I’m also a bit of a cheater today, as I had started this micro piece before Christmas. But I finished it today, as it seemed to fit the challenge.
https://makesmesodigress.com/2016/06/10/they/
June 10, 2016 — 5:51 PM
Fantastical says:
That was fun. Short and sweet, and yet tells the perfect little story. Thanks for sharing.
June 14, 2016 — 12:04 PM
mannixk says:
Thanks. Very short, but maybe with room to grow.
June 15, 2016 — 1:42 PM
legreene515 says:
Good start. I think you could go SO many places with this!
June 16, 2016 — 10:02 AM
Mariah Avix says:
I don’t need an actual knock right. Like …throwing something..or someone… into a door at a really high speed…that would work…right? Right.
I have to go throw something.
June 10, 2016 — 6:14 PM
Mariah Avix says:
Two crashes into a door. http://insani-x.com/
I don’t follow directions well.
June 10, 2016 — 10:05 PM
Fantastical says:
Prompts are meant to inspire, even if that inspiration takes you off the beaten path a bit. Glad you shared it regardless. Was a fun read.
June 14, 2016 — 12:07 PM
Carol J Forrester says:
https://caroljforrester.com/2016/06/10/the-girl-across-the-street/
Third attempt at a story for this prompt. This one I managed to finish.
June 10, 2016 — 6:35 PM
christopherslagle says:
Glad this one made it to the blog. I really enjoyed it.
June 14, 2016 — 11:34 AM
Carol J Forrester says:
Thank you.
June 14, 2016 — 4:23 PM
Fantastical says:
Glad this made it as well. This was a joy to read.
June 14, 2016 — 12:15 PM
legreene515 says:
I really enjoyed this story!
June 16, 2016 — 10:47 AM
Mozette says:
http://youcantgoback-andotherimpossibilities.blogspot.com.au/2016/06/blind-target.html
Enjoy.
June 10, 2016 — 8:50 PM
StarNinja says:
Thrilling and exciting! I loved this little snap shot into Lisa’s life. It almost felt like a true crime style story. The kind that needs a slick voice over guy to say, “Little did the they know that, like Justice, Lisa was also blind. And, like Justice, she always got her man.” Great stuff, Mozette. Thanks for sharing!
June 13, 2016 — 5:32 PM
Mozette says:
Thank you. 😀 A few years ago, I lost my sight in my left eye for a few days (during a big seizure, I cut the inside of my eyelid and when it healed, it didn’t heal properly and pulled a piece of my cornea off, allowing in the sunlight and anything else into my eyeball – very painful). I was lucky to regain my sight; but it was scary to not be able to see over those few days. I drew from that experience and thought to use a police/guide dog to work it all in together… had fun writing this. 😀
June 14, 2016 — 12:04 AM
Chris says:
Cheater cheater, pants on… wait, that doesn’t work. Anyway, here’s “Unwanted Guests” https://christopherslagle.wordpress.com/2016/06/11/flash-fiction-unwanted-guests
June 11, 2016 — 1:05 PM
jack lee taylor says:
That rocked! Love it!
June 14, 2016 — 12:33 PM
Skye says:
This was good. More the beginning of a story, maybe?
June 14, 2016 — 9:20 PM
christopherslagle says:
Thanks, Skye! It’s early in the story, but not the very beginning. If you’re interested, I plan to post more on my site; Part 1 is already up and can be linked to through the “Unwanted Guests” blog entry!
June 14, 2016 — 9:58 PM
Fatma Alici says:
When I went to write this a character jumped out of my mind fully formed. A female Wizard who has been trying to get by in the modern world. Now, she needs modern help to catch a killer. And, bam story begins. I love when it all comes together.
http://www.fatmaalici.com/2016/06/11/flash-fiction-a-wizard-whose-stranger/
June 11, 2016 — 3:25 PM
thisdamkid says:
http://www.itsthesedammedkids.com/index.php/2016/06/12/the-lies-of-misanthropy/ Here’s what I’ve got
June 12, 2016 — 1:03 AM
StarNinja says:
Someone’s knocking at the door. Somebody’s ringing a bell. What a simple premise and yet… great story fodder! Here’s my attempt:
https://wormholelesstraveled.wordpress.com/2016/06/12/kconk-kconk/
June 12, 2016 — 1:36 PM
jack lee taylor says:
What a fun read! I know what you mean about simple premise. Tough to do, but nice work!
June 15, 2016 — 1:52 PM
M. D. Flyn (@mdflynwriter) says:
More summer than scifi, a cute story about a cookie dilemma. http://www.mdflyn.com/liars-truth-original-flash-fiction/
June 13, 2016 — 9:17 AM
Sharon Boddy says:
Thanks for giving me an opportunity to indulge a fantasy of smacking the crap out of technology. https://oddznsodz.blogspot.ca/
June 13, 2016 — 9:25 AM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Really liked this one, the description of the near future was really vivid and detailed.
June 16, 2016 — 12:11 PM
lwall6710 says:
https://wordpress.com/post/lwall6710.wordpress.com/182 Always wanted to write a Horror Story.
June 13, 2016 — 10:38 AM
Fantastical says:
Here is my first attempt to this prompt: https://theprose.com/post/71404/knock-knock
June 13, 2016 — 5:52 PM
jack lee taylor says:
Nice! Funny with a hint of darkness. Loved the sales pitch back and forth, especially.
June 14, 2016 — 12:39 PM
Fantastical says:
Thanks. It just popped in my head and I wanted to get it down before I lost some of the details. If I ever come back to it, I want to flesh out the purpose of the sidekick more (details in my head that never translated to the story), but it was a fun little diversion to write regardless.
June 16, 2016 — 1:20 PM
C. Rasmussen says:
This one is a bit different from usual. No science fiction, no action, just… a couple sharing a dinner before one of them leaves for six months (with a nice little surprise at the end):
https://comradecharlie.wordpress.com/2016/06/14/the-first-goodbye/
June 13, 2016 — 6:57 PM
Skye Overall says:
Here’s my entry: http://runnerskye.ca/flash-fiction-challenge-death-comes-knocking/
June 14, 2016 — 2:47 PM
christopherslagle says:
So well written, I could feel Sabine’s resignation. Especially enjoyed the ending!
June 15, 2016 — 8:12 AM
Skye says:
Thanks so much!
June 15, 2016 — 7:22 PM
mannixk says:
Loved this!! You’ve created some truly vivid characters in Wesley and Sabine.
June 15, 2016 — 1:41 PM
Skye says:
Thanks! It’s tricky with such limited space. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
June 15, 2016 — 7:24 PM
Modern Authors says:
I ended up a little over 1000 words. I hope you can forgive me.
https://modernauthors.org/2016/06/14/a-mistake-made-twice/
June 14, 2016 — 4:13 PM
christopherslagle says:
Delightfully bizarre!
June 15, 2016 — 10:55 AM
Vicente L Ruiz says:
I arrive quite late this week. A different approach at who’s at the door, inspired by an idea my son gave me: “Don’t Mess With Me”.
https://medium.com/@VicenteLRuiz/dont-mess-with-me-61a1d2b4fa6#.xugjlai3h
June 14, 2016 — 5:33 PM
Rebecca Douglass says:
A little rough in places, but I like the story. And a crafty way to catch the killer.
June 17, 2016 — 11:53 AM
Vicente L Ruiz says:
Thanks. I didn’t want to be too obvious with the story and it turned out a bit sketchy, I’d say.
June 17, 2016 — 4:43 PM
prosateuse says:
It is VERY short. I just didn’t feel that it needed to be any longer. So it’s on my ello, rather than my website.
https://ello.co/prosateuse/post/khdm6i-sshu66iorgwyg4q
June 14, 2016 — 11:32 PM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Here you go, a bit different to what I usually write: http://davidralphlewis.co.uk/my-writing/a-knock-on-the-door/
June 15, 2016 — 7:14 AM
Skye says:
I liked this one. Great descriptions.
June 15, 2016 — 7:46 PM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Thanks very much!
June 16, 2016 — 5:36 AM
Christopher Slagle says:
Great job, I felt like I was in the middle of the maelstrom.
June 16, 2016 — 7:32 AM
David Ralph Lewis says:
Cheers. Maelstrom is such an excellent word as well
June 16, 2016 — 12:07 PM
shyandretiring says:
Ok, so this is my last attempt at posting. Not sure why I haven’t been able to but if this doesn’t appear I’ll give up, promise.
A few words on the knock at the door. http://shyandretiring.weebly.com/someone-at-the-door.html. Apologies if this doesn’t appear as a proper link (still learning).
June 15, 2016 — 1:12 PM
mannixk says:
I like this one, and didn’t see the ending coming.
June 15, 2016 — 1:35 PM
christopherslagle says:
Love the writing, also didn’t expect the end! Glad to see you post some of your work, and I hope we get to read more soon!
June 15, 2016 — 2:08 PM
Shyandretiring says:
Thank you for comments. A little confession (which I had tried to post before, honest), this piece was already written, so similar to a couple of posts here, so another cheater am afraid. It’s part of something bigger which I’m half way through.
Am a complete technophobe so have messed up previous posts but have tried to leave comments on the great stuff I’ve read here. Looking forward to reading more and being tested by the challenges.
June 15, 2016 — 5:42 PM
Matthew X. Gomez says:
Yep, continued the piece from last week (so this makes me three for three using the same characters).
https://mxgomez.wordpress.com/2016/06/15/the-serpents-map-part-2/
June 15, 2016 — 11:20 PM
Christopher Slagle says:
Great language, pace, characterization, finished with a smile on my face. Keep it up, Matt 🙂
June 16, 2016 — 8:10 AM
Matthew X. Gomez says:
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it.
June 16, 2016 — 9:41 AM
rosswhippo says:
Thanks for the kick in the butt!
The Best Silver
https://rosswhippo.com/2016/06/15/a-flash-challenge/
June 15, 2016 — 11:22 PM
mannixk says:
I liked this one! And the line ““Well I’m a Scorpio so get us some straws.” made me laugh. 🙂
June 16, 2016 — 9:29 AM
Sharon Boddy says:
Nice! Reminded me a little bit of a Canadian flick called “Last Night” with Don McKellar and Sandra Oh.
June 16, 2016 — 9:55 AM
legreene515 says:
Great job! Intriguing, humor, wonderfully three dimensional characters. I loved it.
June 16, 2016 — 11:03 AM
legreene515 says:
I just had to include something about the Orlando shooting, because it’s touched me. I had actually written a completely different piece and started over.
Finished: https://laurengreenewrites.com/2016/06/16/finished/
June 16, 2016 — 7:20 AM
ToniJ says:
Here’s mine. I hope it counts, even if the person at the door never goes inside!
Never Trust A Goblin – https://tonij.com/2016/06/16/never-trust-a-goblin/
June 16, 2016 — 1:34 PM
Eva Nemirovsky says:
There’s a Werewolf on my Doorstep – http://bek516.tumblr.com/post/146026289430/theres-a-werewolf-on-my-doorstep
June 16, 2016 — 4:31 PM
Rebecca Douglass says:
Squeaking in under the wire, as usual.
http://www.ninjalibrarian.com/2016/06/friday-flash-fiction-knock-knock.html
Also as usual, I could have gone horror, but went humor instead.
June 17, 2016 — 1:03 AM
Jemima Pett says:
More back story from my scifi series, but it stands on its own, I think…
http://jemimapett.com/blog/2016/06/17/fridayflash-fiction-the-inspector-calls/
June 17, 2016 — 1:59 AM
Pleasant Street says:
I haven’t posted here in a while. I mostly write poetry but I’ve been working over old fiction and even writing new. Here goes:
Directions https://geletilari.wordpress.com/2016/06/17/directions/
June 17, 2016 — 8:54 AM
turk921 says:
Knock. Knock.
http://www.bxbstudios.com/flash-fiction-knock-knock/
Thanks!
June 17, 2016 — 10:58 AM
Pleasant Street says:
Whoa, I kept waiting for the happy twist. Horrifying, and tense up to the last
June 20, 2016 — 5:36 PM